30WEST has acquired a majority stake in NEON, the upstart distribution company formed by Tom Quinn and Alamo Drafthouse’s Tim League. The two parties got into an altared state after kindling a relationship on the awards-season sleeper I, Tonya, the Craig Gillespie-directed black comedy which was acquired out of Toronto. The film broadens its release heading into the Winter Olympics, a timely slot for a film about disgraced Olympic figure skater Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) and her rivalry with Nancy Kerrigan.
Formed by Dan Friedkin — the All the Money in the World producer who separately operates Imperative Entertainment — and former longtime CAA independent film agent Micah Green, 30WEST has been broadening its investment in progressive companies in the content space. The company buys out initial NEON investor Sparkle Roll, the China-based company which walks away with a tidy profit, per sources.
For Sundance, it also sets up a new and more formidable distributor in the marketplace that can compete with the mini majors. Because of the smart rollout of I, Tonya, NEON was already one of the companies to watch and it now it has the financial resources to get some deals done here.
30West is starting production on the Karyn Kusama-directed Destroyer and the Peter Hedges-directed Ben Is Back. NEON wrapped the Matthew McConaughey-Zac Efron-starrer The Beach Bum.
CAA repped Sparkle Roll Media.
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